News

Headteacher warns of dangers of legal highs

Published

12 years ago

August 5, 2014

PEMBS.TV have released a film on the rising phenomenon of the use and abuse of so called, ‘legal highs’. As a pre-curser to what will be an enlightening and in-depth TV report, The Herald can reveal some alarming facts about these seemingly ‘legal’ drugs and has an exclusive interview with a secondary school head teacher who has sent out a stark warning about the dangers of these substances, following a recent and frightening incident at the school in which he leads.

In the film Pembs TV speak to a number of people directly involved in the sale, use and monitoring of this new and alarming trend. Legal highs are substances specifically designed and manufactured to replicate the effects users can get from some of the established illegal drugs, such as LSD, Cannabis and Cocaine. One local retailer has been clearly linked with the sale of these substances, Allsorts. Daryl Millar, of the Haverfordwest shop, made it clear to us that their shop operated a very strict policy of only selling ‘legal highs’ to over 18s, insinuating that if the drugs involved in the recent school incident had come from their store, it could not have been as a direct result of them selling the product to a minor. He went on to show us which were the most popular of the legal highs that they were retailing; one of which was Pandora’s Box that proved a popular sell whilst we were in the shop filming. Whilst he acknowledged their popularity, he made it clear they were intended for use as either plant food or incense burning (in the case of ‘Pandora’s Box’). What people did with it once they took it home he said he couldn’t say. When asked why, if they were legal, they were being sold from under the counter, as we witnessed, he explained that when openly displayed minors could see how much they were and price up opportunities to get them purchased, also saying that it meant addicts, or anyone to whom they weren’t comfortable selling, could be told they had none of these products in stock. Pembs TV also spoke with Dyfed-Powys Crime Commissioner, Christopher Salmon, who made clear his concerns and frustrations over the use and sale of these legal highs. He said whilst he wasn’t setting up any special units to deal with the problem, his officers were aware of the problem of street dealers buying these in bulk and selling to minors. He believed that neighbourhoods and local people held the key to the success of policing this by contacting their local officers and station if they saw such activity. He also made clear that though there were claims that these drugs were legal he pointed out that many could be laced or contaminated with other, restricted, and in some cases, class A substances. He also warned of the potency of these ‘highs’, saying in many cases they were much stronger than the drugs that were controlled or banned. He did, however, draw the line at legalising controlled drugs expressing his concern of the dangers those addictive drugs posed. Frank Ciccotti, head teacher of Pembroke School, spoke exclusively with The Herald about an incident that occurred on May 14 of this year in which several young people were involved in a drug taking incident that resulted in some of them being hospitalised. Mr Ciccotti described the sequence of events that led to the school’s awareness of the situation: “On May 14 a group of year 10/11 students (15-16 year olds) shared out a legal substance at lunchtime, near a wooded area at the top of the rugby field. It was reported by other pupils. We believe the drug was rolled into cigarettes and smoked. We were alerted by pupils in the area who were not part of it, and they pointed out that one pupil was unwell. “We are fortunate they were responsible and reported it to us, otherwise it could have been a very different day. They escorted the pupil to the office where I attended and decided straight away to call for an ambulance. We set about finding the remaining pupils involved, which was about ten; and of these two were affected. “The worst affected was an alarming case as he was grey in colour and was slipping in and out of consciousness and he looked very ill. Two other pupils had lost colour but were more lucid, and the others were just a bit silly. Ambulance crew insisted they all went to hospital and they knew what they had taken as they had seen the sachet. “There had been a fatality fairly recently so it was a matter of great concern. They also summoned the air ambulance as protocol, but it was deemed the worst affected could be taken by road. Fortunately, all were checked out and released later that day”. On what the substance was, he said he couldn’t say, as the police asked him not to as it was an ongoing investigation, though The Herald has been informed by a student of the school that they believe the drug was known as ‘Exodus Damnation’. Mr Ciccotti went on to talk about how these young people had obtained the drug, which are illegal for minors to purchase. “We believe the drug was purchased the evening before by one of the students from a young adult from a car in the area. They weren’t sold on site, and obviously the child who brought it in had a more severe punishment than the others. The danger with these legal highs is they are portable and easy to carry.” He gave this message to parents who may be concerned that such an incident could occur in a school. “I would say it can happen anywhere, no one can be complacent, at any school and anywhere children could have access to this so parents must stress the dangers to their children.” He also had this to say on how the school could instigate future measures to help prevent a repeat incident. “We have strengthened the PSE programme, and we also have a specialist drugs advisor. The police also did an assembly to stress they (these substances) may be legal but they are not safe. These are drugs produced by profiteers and they are marketed by the greedy and purchased by the naive. “These are sold as plant food and incense and maybe they are safe in those contexts, but not in the context of smoking or taken as pills. They are harmful substances and the effects are acute and even the marketing of these (and on the packaging) suggests they are taken in the presence of someone who is sober. Feed them to your plants but don’t put them in your body.” He finished with a simple message: “We need to be smarter as a nation about ‘legal highs’. They are substances that are harmful to health. In school they would be in a poisons cabinet. We need to prevent their open sale.” To watch the full interview with Mr Ciccotti, as well as those with our Crime Commissioner and Daryl Millar of Allsorts, watch out for the release of the film next week, as Pembs. TV lifts the lid on legal highs and their effects.

Check out the video here: http://pembs-herald.co.uk/video/

Local Government

Welsh Government calls in controversial DARC radar application

Published

2 hours ago

July 22, 2026

Tom Sinclair

Final decision removed from Pembrokeshire County Council after minister concludes scheme raises national security and national planning issues

THE WELSH GOVERNMENT has taken control of the decision over controversial plans for a major military radar installation in Pembrokeshire.

Siân Gwenllian MS, Cabinet Secretary for Local Government, Housing and Planning, has called in the planning application for the proposed Deep Space Advanced Radar Capability development at Cawdor Barracks, Brawdy.

The intervention means Pembrokeshire County Council will no longer decide whether the scheme should be granted planning permission.

The council’s planning committee had been expected to consider application 25/1101/PA on Tuesday, July 28, following one of the largest local campaigns against a development seen in Pembrokeshire for years.

The call-in represents a major procedural victory for PARC Against DARC, which has spent two years campaigning for the decision to be taken at Welsh Government level.

However, it does not mean that the radar development has been refused.

The application will now enter a national planning process, with the evidence likely to be examined by an independent planning inspector before a recommendation is made to Welsh Ministers.

PARC Against DARC described the intervention as a “seismic and significant step” and welcomed what it said was a decision to recognise the national and international implications of the project.

A campaign spokesperson said: “Siân Gwenllian has made the right decision here, and DARC is far from a typical infrastructure project.

“Its national and international scope and implications mean it raises issues that go well beyond the local planning process, demanding consideration at Welsh Government level.”

The proposed development would involve the construction of 27 large radar dishes, consisting of six transmitters and 21 receivers, together with associated buildings, power supplies, security infrastructure and landscaping.

The Pembrokeshire installation would form the UK element of an international radar network being developed with the United States and Australia.

The Ministry of Defence says the system would track objects in deep space and help protect satellites and other critical infrastructure.

Opponents argue that the development would industrialise a sensitive rural landscape close to the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park, damage tourism and wildlife, and increase the militarisation of space.

According to the ministerial call-in letter, the proposed development raises national security issues because of its strategic defence purpose and represents a novel planning matter.

The letter also states that the scheme could conflict with national planning policy relating to landscape, ecology, sustainability and placemaking.

It adds that the application is likely to be controversial beyond the immediate area and has already attracted considerable public interest.

The minister concluded that the proposal was therefore of more than local importance and should be determined by Welsh Ministers.

Pembrokeshire County Council must now forward the planning application, consultation responses, public representations and other relevant documents to the Welsh Government.

The council will still be able to provide evidence and its assessment of the development, but its planning committee will not make the final decision.

The decision comes days after former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn publicly supported calls for the application to be taken out of the council’s hands.

Mr Corbyn addressed campaigners during a political gathering in Wales on Saturday, where opposition to DARC and the wider militarisation of Wales formed part of the programme.

PARC says a Freedom of Information response revealed that 1,121 objections were submitted during the council’s consultation process, compared with one representation in support.

Almost 20,000 people have also signed a petition opposing the radar project.

Campaigners said the level of opposition demonstrated that the dispute had developed into something far larger than an ordinary disagreement over a planning application.

PARC said: “This is not just a group of residents objecting to a development. It is a mass movement of public opposition.

“Our national parks should not be sacrificed to military expansion. Our communities should not be ignored when they speak with such a clear and overwhelming voice.”

Plaid Cymru has repeatedly expressed opposition to the DARC proposal.

Party representatives have tabled a statement of opinion in the Senedd, while an Early Day Motion opposing the development was presented at Westminster. Plaid Cymru members also voted unanimously at the party’s 2024 conference to oppose the scheme.

Campaigners said the call-in showed that the new Plaid Cymru-led Welsh Government had listened to concerns raised by residents.

The application could now become the focus of a significant political dispute between the Welsh and UK governments.

The Ministry of Defence has promoted Brawdy as its preferred location for the UK DARC installation, while campaigners are calling on Welsh Ministers to reject the application on planning, environmental and landscape grounds.

PARC has also highlighted what it described as a historical twist involving the newly appointed Welsh Secretary, Stephen Kinnock.

The group says it has a letter sent by his father, former Labour leader Neil Kinnock, supporting campaigners who opposed a similar radar proposal in Pembrokeshire during the 1990s.

The campaign is now asking whether Stephen Kinnock will support the current Ministry of Defence proposal or reflect his father’s earlier opposition.

A demonstration had been planned outside County Hall in Haverfordwest ahead of the council planning meeting on Tuesday, July 28.

Organisers say the gathering will still take place from 9am, but will instead be held as a vigil supporting the Welsh Government’s decision to call in the application.

The next stages of the process, including whether the application will be examined through written representations, a hearing or a public inquiry, have not yet been confirmed.

Welsh Ministers will ultimately have the power to approve or refuse the development.

For campaigners, the call-in marks the most significant breakthrough of their two-year fight against DARC. The final battle over whether the radar array can be built at Brawdy, however, is still to come.

Crime

Police appeal after £55,000 stolen in Brecon bank ATM raid

Published

3 hours ago

July 21, 2026

Tom Sinclair

Cash machine at High Street NatWest branch was broken into during an early-hours burglary

POLICE have launched an investigation after an estimated £55,000 was stolen from a cash machine at a bank in Brecon.

Dyfed-Powys Police received a report at around 1.15am on Monday (July 20) that the ATM at the NatWest branch on High Street had been broken into.

Cash was taken from the machine, with investigating officers estimating the total amount stolen to be approximately £55,000.

Police tape was placed across the entrance to the bank and around the outside cash machine during Monday as officers carried out inquiries at the scene.

Members of the public reported seeing a police presence on the high street, with officers entering and leaving the building throughout the day.

No arrests have been made and the investigation remains ongoing.

Officers are appealing for witnesses, including anyone who noticed suspicious people or vehicles in Brecon town centre during the early hours of Monday morning.

Police would also like to hear from anybody who may have CCTV, doorbell-camera or dashcam footage which could assist the investigation.

Information can be provided to Dyfed-Powys Police online, by emailing [email protected] or by calling 101.

Those contacting police should quote reference 26*586801.

Information can also be given anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers by calling 0800 555 111.

Local Government

Consultation over electoral changes to eight Pembrokeshire community councils

Published

6 hours ago

July 21, 2026

Tom Sinclair

Residents are being asked for their views on proposed changes affecting councillor numbers and electoral arrangements in communities across the county

PEMBROKESHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL is inviting residents, organisations and other interested parties to have their say on proposed changes to the electoral arrangements of eight community councils across the county.

The consultation follows recommendations published by the Democracy and Boundary Commission Cymru in January 2025 as part of a wider review of Pembrokeshire’s community boundaries and local electoral arrangements.

The Commission’s review considered whether the county’s existing communities and community wards continued to provide effective and convenient local government.

It examined issues including community boundaries, the number of councillors serving each area, the distribution of councillors between community wards and whether existing arrangements continued to reflect local populations and community identities.

While a number of the Commission’s recommendations involved changes to community boundaries, it also proposed alterations to the electoral arrangements of some community councils where no boundary changes were recommended.

Those particular proposals could not be introduced through the original community review process and must now be considered separately by Pembrokeshire County Council.

The latest consultation concerns the following communities:

Lamphey
Llanrhian
Martletwy
Nolton and Roch
Pencaer
St Dogmaels
Stackpole and Castlemartin
Wolfscastle

The proposals could affect matters such as the number of councillors elected to individual community councils and how council seats are distributed between community wards.

Community and town councils form the most local tier of elected government. They represent the interests of their communities and may be responsible for services and facilities including public spaces, community buildings, play areas, noticeboards and local events.

The County Council said it was seeking views from residents and organisations with connections to the communities affected to ensure that local perspectives were considered before any decisions were made.

The consultation will open on Tuesday, July 28, and close on Friday, September 11, 2026.

Full details of the proposed changes and supporting documents will be available through Pembrokeshire County Council’s Have Your Say consultation portal.

Residents will be able to review the proposals affecting their community and submit comments online.

Paper copies of the consultation documents can also be requested by contacting the Council’s Customer Contact Centre on 01437 764551 or emailing [email protected].

Anyone with questions about the proposals or the review process is encouraged to contact the Council’s electoral services team.